Direct

Long-term agricultural field experiments, especially
those that are 50 years or older, are relatively rare
globally. A significant majority of them are also
located in Europe and North America, with only a
handful in Africa. One of the latter is the Pretoria
long-term crop rotation and fertilization experiment
that has been ongoing for over 60 years, hence the
oldest of its kind in Africa. This book presents
research results of a series of case studies
conducted on the Pretoria long-term trial that
comprehensively assessed long-term trends of soil
quality and productivity in response to decades of
crop rotation and fertilization practices. Important
insights provided by the studies and their
implications for agroecosystem sustainability and
environmental quality are discussed in the book. Data
contained in the book are strongly believed to
provide a valuable referential base and contribute
towards bridging the cross-regional information gap
that exists between the African continent and the
rest of the World. The book will be of interest to
Soil and Environmental scientists, Agronomists,
Extension workers, Farm managers, and others in the
agricultural and fertilizer industry.

Autorentext
Asfaw T. Belay, Ph.D : Studied, and did research on, Soil Microbiology and Global Change Biology at Ghent University (Belgium), Oklahoma University (USA), Pretoria University (South Africa) and Alemaya University (Ethiopia) where he also lectured several Plant and Soil Science courses for many years.

Klappentext
Long-term agricultural field experiments, especially those that are 50 years or older, are relatively rare globally. A significant majority of them are also located in Europe and North America, with only a handful in Africa. One of the latter is the Pretoria long-term crop rotation and fertilization experiment that has been ongoing for over 60 years, hence the oldest of its kind in Africa. This book presents research results of a series of case studies conducted on the Pretoria long-term trial that comprehensively assessed long-term trends of soil quality and productivity in response to decades of crop rotation and fertilization practices. Important insights provided by the studies and their implications for agroecosystem sustainability and environmental quality are discussed in the book. Data contained in the book are strongly believed to provide a valuable referential base and contribute towards bridging the cross-regional information gap that exists between the African continent and the rest of the World. The book will be of interest to Soil and Environmental scientists, Agronomists, Extension workers, Farm managers, and others in the agricultural and fertilizer industry.